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Uneven "highlight" line: How to make?


T

Tegger

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line.jpg

The image above is a portion of an image that was sent to me by a customer.

See the edge-lit line I've indicated with the arrow? See how it follows a smooth arc, but has a variable glow? How do you do that? I have PS CS5 Extended, and a Wacom PTK-640 tablet, but no matter how I try, I can't achieve a smooth arc like the one in the image. Did the artist actually sketch this by hand? Is it just a matter of steadiness?

This sort of effect is common in graphics, but I seem to be too stupid to be able to force Google to cough up how it's done.

Any help?
 
Ok, What you can do to achieve this effect is bump up the brush size a bit.
Draw the line as steady as you can on a separate layer.
Then apply a Gaussian blur, and if you did not achieve the level of smoothness you like.
Experiment, with layer opacity and strokes on layers of different opacity(s).
My hints to you sir.
~Hope this helps.
 
mattattack347 said:
Draw the line as steady as you can
Click to expand...
So this is dependent on a steady hand? Unfortunately my hands are not steady, at least not within the confines of an 8" x 5" Wacom tablet, so that would be difficult.

I was hoping I could draw a line with my Pen (P), and apply some sort of uneven Brush stroke to it. The problem is that none of the Brush strokes I try will allow me the exact effect I see in the image I posted.
 
Well see there is the thing, Sometimes tablets respond better if you move quickly.
It makes it smoother for mine, Anyway hope this helps.
 
Like hoogle suggested use the pen tool to create path and then stroke path. IF i may add to that, to get the slight fading in certain areas just use a large soft edges eraser with low flow and opacity.
 
Pen tool is probably your best bet here. Drawing the line in that you want and right-clicking the path and stroke with the brush that you want to use. After that adding an outer glow to give the glow effect you want. (Decrease the spread & increasing the size)

Hope this helps.
 
Hoogle said:
you could use pen tool then stroke the path with the brush
Click to expand...
That's exactly what I did try. I said this in my second message:

"I was hoping I could draw a line with my Pen (P), and apply some sort of uneven Brush stroke to it. The problem is that none of the Brush strokes I try will allow me the exact effect I see in the image I posted."

If it's possible to stroke a Pen line to get the effect shown in the picture, then it is escaping me how to do it.
 
mattattack347 said:
Ok, What you can do to achieve this effect is bump up the brush size a bit.
Draw the line as steady as you can on a separate layer.
Then apply a Gaussian blur, and if you did not achieve the level of smoothness you like.
Experiment, with layer opacity and strokes on layers of different opacity(s).
My hints to you sir.
~Hope this helps.
Click to expand...
mattattack347 got it right.
did this kind of effect many times simulating photography on the paper with curled edges.
make new layer
take soft edge brush make it large in size
draw your line (you may set your mouse resolution really low if you're hand isn't steady)
you may do repeted moves to make it realistic
apply the blur
take eraser tool with soft edge and delete some of the effect line partialy to make it realistic
play with layer transparency
ctrl+e enjoy
 
I'm not sure anyone's actually reading my posts.

I've tried the Pen tool. I've tried many Brush settings in conjunction with the Pen. Perhaps due to physical limitations, I am unable to achieve a smooth arc by hand with my tablet: All my attempts are slightly distorted or wobbly. This leads me to believe that the Pen must be involved in some way. I do not think selective erasing is the answer, for the same reason that I cannot get the finished arc to look smooth.

I re-post here, for the third time, the relevant text from my second post:
"none of the Brush strokes I try will allow me the exact effect I see in the image I posted."

So. let me rephrase my original question in the hopes of eliciting an informed response:
Does anyone know how to make a Brush that will create the EXACT effect shown in my image? Note that the effect involves varying widths and brightness along the line's length.
Is such a thing even possible without selective erasing or other tricks?
 
Last edited:
i would first create a straight line.
you can do this by using the Brush Tool.
with the brush tool first click/paint a dot at the start of where you want to draw the line.
then click and hold down the "Shift" key on your keyboard (not sure about a tablet) and paint a dot at the end of where you want the line.
PS should then make a straight line from start to end.
now just warp and blur the line how you want.

here is proof that it works
kpwrbnjd.jpg
my line looks the same as the original one using the method above
 
Last edited:
Hoogle said:
So are you after something like this then ?????
Click to expand...
Close. But instead of an even blur, a blur that grows and fades along the line. Note that the line in my original image is brighter at the top than in the middle. I mean for my line to have random intervals of brightness and dimness along its length.
 
well you could achieve that by doing the way of pen tool and stroke just like I just did but check the box simulate pressure, if it is on its own layer then you could probably add the filter plastic wrap to it to give it more of a highlight look. Then apply a layer mask and brush away edges slightly
 
Tegger said:
Close. But instead of an even blur, a blur that grows and fades along the line. Note that the line in my original image is brighter at the top than in the middle. I mean for my line to have random intervals of brightness and dimness along its length.
Click to expand...
you can do that with dodge and burn
 
Dataflow said:
now just warp and blur the line how you want.
Click to expand...
Warping a line is something I also tried. But evidently not properly. I see now that there are options at the top for the details of the warp; you do not need to fiddle with each of the little handles. Fiddling with each individual handle was what got me in trouble with this approach in the first place.

I just tried something, and it seems to work. The tablet works like a mouse, where if you hold down the Shift key as you draw, the line goes straight. And I still get my variable width and opacity.

I'm too tired to continue any further tonight, but I'll post my results tomorrow. Thanks, Dataflow. I think this may be the solution.
 
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